My first boat: New vs Used?

[ckone0814]

Re: My first boat: New vs Used?

USED

You absolutely, positively, will want a bigger boat. I've had mine 8 months and am already looking at bigger ones.

You will make a lot of rookie duh-ohs. Why bang-up a new boat?

 

[triumphrick]

Re: My first boat: New vs Used?

Welcome..glad you found us. This forum is full of very knowledgable and helpful folks.
You can learn a whole lot here by using the search functions. Some have mentioned some things about Tracker. If you search using "tracker" you will find posts..both good and bad about the boats.
In todays money, $8k is not a lot. Especially for a new boat. But, if you have to sell for any reason, you will lose your butt for the first four or five years.
I feel like a lot of the other posters...get your feet wet (not literally!) by going with a used boat first.
Shop wisely and use craigslist. The prices there are the barometer for the used boat market. Call on lots of boats first, and if they sold, politely ask for how much.
I would do this for at least three or four weeks, and then I will guaratee you to be the best informed buyer for boats in your area. If you see a deal, move...FAST!
Ever boat I have bought over the past two years (four of them) I have bought within the first two hours the ad had posted.
Good luck and keep us posted! Rick

 

[dorelse]

Re: My first boat: New vs Used?

Well, I'm in the vast minority I know...but...I've owned 3 boats, 17ft, 19ft, and 16ft in that order.

Couldn't be happier with the 16ft boat I have today...so I lost 3ft somewhere along the way, but I didn't mind bigger, I just am happy with my 16ft Bayliner.

I would also vote used for a first boat, let them take the depreciation hit. In a year or 2 or 3, you'll be practiced, and know what you want in a boat and can then get a new one.

I can tell you this, what I think is the perfect boat for me & my family today, isn't even close to what I thought was perfect for us, 6 years ago.

(In fact, I couldn't find the boat I wanted, so I gutted and made my own!)

Sometimes you just need experience and time to figure it all out.

 

[Ken1956]

Re: My first boat: New vs Used?

Thanks to all for the recent replies - much appreciated. I think that with the input I've gotten here, I am strictly looking for a used boat now. It is what I thought I should do all along, but as I mentioned previously, I was somewhat thrown by the prices of the used models I had seen. I know now that a 22 year old boat can still be worth $3,000.00 (+/-). I hope it will be okay to post more links to ads for boats that I'm looking at - as I still have the fear of not knowing all the right things to look for or all the right questions to ask. Thanks again for all the advice!!

 

[mhlbnghm]

Re: My first boat: New vs Used?

Another vote for Used! You WILL want something different regardless of what you buy now. Remember your 1st car? Wasn't it the greatest thing on wheels? Are you still driving it? Would you want it back as your only car?
Didn't think so

Used!

JMB

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: My first boat: New vs Used?

I dunno how financially secure you are, but my first boat cost me $0 (well I traded some fish tanks and fish for it) and cost me about $500 to make sea worthy...well small lake worthy. I did everything stupid you can think of, including destroying the old prop on it. If it floats, you can fish out of it, so don't worry about all the fancy add-ons (live wells, fish finders, trolling motors). You need to learn how to handle the boat first. Depending on the waters you are fishing out of, any decent, 30 year old fiberglass will do the trick. Trust me, you will hit things. Also the smaller boats are easier to handle, dock, launch, load, anchor. Go 1 season in a completely different, cheap as you can find boat. Then sell it in the spring and buy that new boat you want. A simple mistake can cost you thousands on a new boat...but the same mistake on a $500-$1500 boat will only cost you the price of the boat and a lesson learned. Trust the people here, boating ain't as easy as it looks.

Ian